


Not Born Yesterday

by Tiger_Tiger_Burning_Bright



Category: Cut & Run - Madeleine Urban & Abigail Roux, Sidewinder Series - Abigail Roux, Whyborne and Griffin - Jordan L. Hawk
Genre: Alternate Universe - Time Travel, Crossover, Griffin's POV, Kelly's Pov, Ketoi, M/M, Magical Shenanigans, Nick's POV, Whyborne's POV, spoilers for Hoarfrost, the maelstrom, umbrae, widdershins is a crazy murder town
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-06-24
Updated: 2019-08-04
Packaged: 2020-05-19 02:52:56
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 10,144
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19348042
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Tiger_Tiger_Burning_Bright/pseuds/Tiger_Tiger_Burning_Bright
Summary: As honeymoons go, a trip up the coast to try and track down Nick's elusive ancestor, Griffin Flaherty, sounds pretty perfect. History, sunshine and a puzzle to unravel, what more could they want? It's not like anything could go wrong. Right?aka the time travelling Nickels fic that I just couldn't let go of.





	1. Chapter 1 - Kelly

**Author's Note:**

> Group chats are a dangerous thing. Specifically, group chats where we decide that Nick O'Flaherty is related to Griffin Flaherty are even worse. They make you do crazy things, like write a whole multi chaptered time travel fic, even though it's ridiculous.
> 
> To the librarians of the Ladysmith group chat - this is your fault...

Kelly woke as the first rays of morning light started drifting in through the cabin window. As he stretched, little twinges of soreness all over made him grin. If this was what married life was like he was totally onboard with it, he thought, as he rolled on to his side to find Nick watching him, a soft smile on his face.

“Hey,” Kelly grumbled rubbing the sleep out of his eyes, “you just gonna watch me like a creeper.”

“I can watch my husband, can't I?” 

Nick raised an eyebrow, his green eyes glittering with mischief and honestly, Kelly was pretty much powerless to argue. That and his stomach was still doing the snoopy dance at Nick’s words. Husband. Nick O’ fucking Flaherty had just called him his husband. The best part was it was true. He was now, absolutely, officially,  _ legally  _ married to Nick. Did that make him Mr O’Flaherty now? Or was Nick, Mr Abbott? Or maybe O’Flaherty-Abbott? Actually, no, that sounded weird. Abbott-O’Flaherty? Nope. They really had to sort that out.

“Hey, what’s going on in that mind of yours” Nick tapped a finger to Kelly’s forehead, effectively rousing him from his thoughts. Kelly blinked at him and practically melted at the look of adoration on Nick’s face.

“I was wondering what to call myself now.” Kelly admitted with a shrug.

“How about mine.” Nick growled, placing a hand to Kelly’s face and tugging him into a kiss.

When they finally broke apart, both of them were breathless and it took every ounce of willpower he had for Kelly to place a hand to Nick’s chest and push him back a little. Nick grumbled under his breath.

“I thought you wanted to make an early start this morning.” Kelly tapped his fingers against Nick’s chest 

“Plans can change.” Nick tried to close the distance but Kelly’s hand stayed firm. “Jeez, okay. Is this what being married to you is gonna be like?” 

Although Nick was complaining there was no mistaking the amusement in his voice.

“You better believe it bud.” Kelly rolled away and bounced out of bed, striding over towards the bathroom.

“Kels.” Nick cried plaintively and Kelly glanced over his shoulder to see Nick leaning back against the headboard unashamedly checking out Kelly’s naked ass.

“What? I gotta have a shower. So do you. Mind you water shortages, maybe we should share.” Kelly winked and turned back without even waiting for Nick’s answer. He grinned to himself as he heard the unmistakable sound of Nick jumping out of bed and striding towards him. 

Yep, Kelly Abbott thought, married life was gonna be pretty damn sweet.

……………..

Their early start, unsurprisingly, didn't happen and it was well past ten o’clock by the time they managed to drag themselves apart and actually get some clothes on. Kelly couldn't have cared less, he was pretty sure that was how honeymoons were  _ supposed  _ to be anyway. 

Nick had cooked them an epic breakfast, playfully batting Kelly on the hand with a spatula when he tried to sneak some bacon from the pan before it was done, then ushering him over to the table to eat like a mother hen. Kelly was sure he never had bacon, eggs and pancakes taste this good in his entire life. Then again they had worked up quite an appetite since they’d arrived back at the Fiddler after the wedding.

“You know we don't have to do this Kels. We can go anywhere you want. Or even stay right here.” Nick said as he pushed his empty plate forward on the table.

Kelly snorted out a laugh and pointedly glanced over to the other side of the room where the table was still covered with a pile of papers and vintage photos, scattered apparently haphazardly.

“Sure we do.” Kelly grinned. “C’mon Irish you know you won't rest till you've solved that mystery.”

“Yeah but..” Nick started to protest.

“Babe, what matters to you matters to me now, right?” 

“I love you, you know that.” Nick leaned forward, elbows on the table, head resting on his palms and gazed at Kelly with something akin to wonder.

“Yeah, you do.” Kelly smirked popping a piece of bacon into his mouth and chewing it slowly before continuing. “Now let's go find this mystery relative of yours.”

…………..

Kelly lounged back on the seat, enjoying the sunshine on his face, but, if he was being honest, enjoying the sight of Nick steering the Fiddler even more. They were taking the relatively short trip up the coast to Gloucester, Massachusetts, their starting destination for the honeymoon. It wasn't the most obvious location but it had become pretty much inevitable that it was where they’d end up from the moment Paddy Whelan had given Nick the box of family archives two weeks before the wedding.

Paddy had been surprised when Kelly had reached out to him and asked if he wanted to come to the wedding. Kelly had doubted his decision to contact him but the way in which Paddy had beamed at him, when he’d heard why he’d arranged the meeting, made it clear that it was the right thing to do. He’d thanked Kelly warmly, patting him on the back and welcoming him to the family before, sadly, declining the offer on the grounds that it was probably safer for Nick and Kelly if he didn't come. It had made perfect sense. He had, however, insisted that he take the pair of them to a fancy pre wedding dinner to celebrate and it had been there that he’d handed over the box.

The look on Nick’s face when he’d glanced through the contents had practically made Kelly’s heart explode with happiness. All his life Nick had searched for a real family and there it was in newspaper cuttings and faded sepia photos, exactly where Nick had come from. With Nick absorbed Paddy had simply winked at Kelly. Kelly had mouthed “thank you” and Paddy had nodded sharply. For a notorious mob boss, Kelly liked the man a great deal. He wasn't sure what that said about him, but he didn't really care.

The rest of the evening Paddy regaled them with stories of the family and it was a revelation to Kelly. He’d sat in rapt attention as Paddy had spoken with obvious affection about his grandmother Sarah Whelan, the woman who’d really been the start of the family legacy. 

Sarah was a fascinating person and there was no doubt in Kelly’s mind that she was where Nick got at least some of his grit and determination. At the tender age of twenty, Sarah, the youngest daughter of the then mob boss, had upped and left for Alaska, her thirst for adventure taking her towards the gold rush and the chance of making a fortune in her own right. Not much was known about her stay there, records from the time being shaky at best. What was known though was that when she returned years later, she had more than succeeded in making her money and now had an infant son and no husband.

For many women of the time that would've been a situation where societal shame would made them hide away, not for Sarah. She had come back determined to continue her success and within a remarkably short time had usurped her only remaining brother and taken over the Boston mob, ruling it with a rod of iron. Papers of the time had described her as a successful business woman and a widow. The truth was very different to the lie that Sarah propagated. Sarah had never married, her husband had not died in a tragic mining accident, unlike the story regularly carried by the society papers. Sarah’s son, Paddy’s father, Nick’s grandfather, had been the result of a fling with a fellow gold miner by the name of Jack Hogue. By all accounts Jack had been a fairly decent, if somewhat ordinary guy. Paddy had told them that as soon as he’d found out about his son that he’d tried to do the right thing but Sarah wanted no part of it, determined to not be beholden to any man. She had, however, allowed him to be a part of his son’s life, as was demonstrated by the many old photos of them together. Jack had travelled extensively and had sent gifts from all over the country to his child, the most precious of all was the family Claddagh ring, the same one that Nick always wore on his finger. Beyond that there was little known about him, apart from the fact that he and his brothers had been orphaned at a young age.

It wasn't however that story, that particular mystery, that had captured Nick’s attention.

It had been a week before the wedding, when Kelly had woken in the middle of the night to an empty bed and found Nick pouring over a group of photos, that he’d realised there was another family member that had fascinated Nick. A family member who only appeared in a few faded photos. His great-great uncle, Griffin Flaherty.

In particular there had been one photo that Nick couldn’t drag his eyes away even when Kelly slid in beside him and and bumped his shoulder.

“Uh sorry.” Nick had mumbled as he’d glanced up, eyes shining emerald in the harsh lamplight.

“What you got there babe?” Kelly had asked and Nick had wordlessly handed the tattered photo over.

The photo was faded round the edges and slightly cracked. It featured two men, standing stiffly next to each other, as was the fashion at the time. Kelly glanced across at Nick, eyebrows furrowed and Nick had just spun his finger to indicate that Kelly should flip the photo over.

“Griffin Flaherty,” Kelly had read the faded writing on the back of the photo, “that’s your great-great uncle right?”

“Yeah.” Nick nodded for him to continue.

“And his lifelong…” Kelly’s eyes widened as he’d started to get what might have piqued Nick’s interest.

“Keep going.” Nick’s voice had been little more than a low growl. Kelly cleared his throat before continuing.

“And his lifelong friend Dr Percival Whyborne.” Kelly flipped the photo back and stared hard at the photo of the two men again. Griffin Flaherty was standing, cane in his right hand, and an almost imperceptible smile on his face. Beside him was a taller man, hair surprisingly dishevelled when you considered his otherwise impeccable dress. “You don't think?”

“He has his hand on Whyborne’s back.” Nick said.

Kelly squinted down at the photo again and when he looked closely there was no mistaking it 

“Well, fuck.” He’d said under his breath.

And so it had begun. Any spare moment they had been spent researching the elusive couple. Information on Whybourne had been relatively easy to find, he’d been the son and heir of a railroad owner so there wasn't exactly a death of stories, including some rather florid accounts of the deaths of his older siblings and mother. Griffin had been harder to track and although the archives were pretty extensive in Boston it was clear if they wanted to find out more they’d have to travel further afield. More specifically up the coast to Cape Ann, home of the now long gone town where the pair had apparently lived, a once thriving port town called Widdershins.

Nick had argued, somewhat half heartedly if you asked Kelly, that it could wait until they came back from their honeymoon, but Kelly had known better. Which was why, on their first day as husbands they were heading up the coast hoping to find out more about Nick’s allusive ancestor and, maybe, find out about the strange place known as Widdershins. As honeymoons went, tracking down a mystery seemed pretty perfect for the pair of them, kelly thought.

……..

The first few days spent in Gloucester were pretty much as close to perfect as Kelly could've ever imagined in his wildest dreams. They spent their days, when they finally managed to drag themselves out of bed, wandering the picturesque streets and walking hand in hand down Good Harbour Beach. They visited art galleries and the fishing port and even an ice house, which gave Kelly the perfect excuse to cuddle up to his husband to try and stay warm. Nick was in his element, absorbing all the stories with the excitement that only a true history nerd possessed. Nick was happy and that in turn made Kelly happy. There had been a time, not too long ago, when he’d wondered if he’d ever see that mischievous glint in Nick’s eyes again. It was now there every day. Kelly cherished every second.

In the evenings they’d go to a local restaurant and Kelly would try his very best to restrain himself when subjected to Nick O’Flaherty, dressed in his most expensive suit and demonstrating his signature O’Flaherty charm. There were more than a few occasions when it was only his husband’s legendary patience that meant they got back to the Fiddler without being arrested for public indecency.

Early on the fourth day of their stay they made their way to the Cape Ann Museum. They’d stopped in there when they first arrived but had had to make an appointment to see the library, so they hadn't really got much further on the mystery that had dragged them to the place. As they walked through the front doors Kelly could practically feel Nick vibrating with energy, a mixture of excitement and nerves.

“Hey babe. It’ll be fine.” He squeezed Nick's hand in his and Nick smiled sheepishly at him.

“Yeah. I know. I just hope they have something for me,” Nick admitted. “Not sure I know where else to look.”

“Oh they will.” 

“You don't know that.” Nick tried to argue but Kelly held a hand up.

“They don't call you lucky for nothing.” Kelly said as Nick burst into laughter.

When they arrived at the reception desk a tall pale man smiled up at them and ushered them into the library itself. Kelly wasn't sure what he’d expected but it wasn't what they found. Instead of ornate wood and antique desks they found a nondescript room with what looked like a conference table in the middle, surrounded with metal filing cabinets and shelves laden with ancient looking books.

“Ms Hancock will be with you soon.” The man, who hadn't bothered to introduce himself, said as he settled them down. “Would you like coffee or tea while you wait.”

“I'm good..” Nick’s brow was furrowed as he spoke. Sensing the change in mood Kelly placed a hand on Nick’s forearm.

“She doesn't need to worry. Just point us in the right direction and you won't even know we’re here.” He said to the man.

“Oh no, sir, Ms Hancock insisted on meeting you when she heard of your enquiry. She won't be long.” The man said before bustling off without even waiting for an answer.

“Well that was weird.” Kelly muttered under his breath. Nick just silently nodded, his eyes watching the stack into which the man had seemingly vanished.

They didn't have to wait long before a petite grey haired lady emerged. Her hair was neatly pulled back and she had thick rimmed glasses on a chain around her neck. Although she was smiling, her expression could best be described as guarded. She was pretty much the poster girl for what everyone expected a librarian to look like from her tweed skirt suit and sensible shoes, to the bundle of papers under her arm. The only thing she was missing was a string of pearls which Kelly found kind of disappointing.

“Mr O’Flaherty.” Ms Hancock extended a small hand, apparently knowing without even asking which one of them was Nick. Nick shook her hand with great care.“And you must be Mr Abbott. It’s a pleasure to meet you both.”

Ms Hancock moved to the other side of the table and sat down directly opposite them, eyeing them with a mixture of what looked like suspicion and interest. She laid the files on the table, almost reverentially and tapped her perfectly manicured fingers on top of them.

“It’s lovely of you to spare the time for us Ms Hancock, but I'm quite sure you have more important things to be doing and we wouldn't want to waste any of your valuable time.” Nick’s voice was smooth as honey, his expression open and guileless. Kelly had never seen  _ anyone  _  able to resist Nick in full on charm mode. Until now.

“You wanted to know about Griffin Flaherty?” Ms Hancock asked, completely ignoring Nick’s attempts. That alone left Kelly speechless. Apparently it had the same effect on Nick. 

“Yes ma’am I did.” Nick replied, sounding more than a little like a schoolboy who had been told off by the teacher.

“And why  _ exactly _ would that be. The truth if you please.” Ms Hancock narrowed her eyes and gave Nick a look that Kelly was pretty sure would make any other man run for the hills. Nick only squared his shoulders and met her gaze with equal determination.

“He’s my great-great uncle.” He replied simply. 

The transformation in Ms Hancock’s expression was almost instantaneous, the icy head librarian disappeared, replaced by a smiling benevolent old lady.

“Oh my days, of course he is.” Ms Hancock lifted her hand to her face, only partially managing to cover the beaming smile on her face.

“Ms Hancock?” Nick’s voice sounded as confused as Kelly felt by the sudden change.

“Oh don't be silly, call me Mary.” Ms Hancock beamed. Kelly and Nick exchanged a look as she grabbed her glasses and put them on. “I should have seen it the second you came in. You have his eyes you know, and from what I’ve heard, back in the day, his hair was just the same as yours.”

“You met him?” Kelly asked leaning forward, elbows rested on the table.

“Oh, only a couple of times, when I was a very young girl. He was quite the old man by then, but still such a charmer. His husband was the shy one mind you, very gently spoken though and…”

“Husband?” Kelly blurted out unable to stop himself

“You’re sure?” Nick said at almost the same time

“Oh yes, of course. They never said as much but you never did see the pair of them apart until the day they died, and both of them wore rings that were the mirror image of each other. Mind you seems to be a family trait to get yourself a handsome husband doesn't it?” Mary Hancock nodded at Kelly.

“I like her.” Kelly indicated with his thumb.

“Of course you do.” Nick rolled his eyes and sighed.

“Well she has good taste.” Kelly replied with a cheeky grin.

“Anyway, Ms Hancock, sorry Mary, we were wondering if you had any information on them and..” Nick began to speak only for Mary to shush him.

“You know I should've realised you’d come when the other one turned up. Didn't like him at all, very pushy. I’ll tell you now he left without what he was looking for.” Mary began to ramble and, judging by the tension in Nick’s shoulders and the way he was rubbing at his neck, it seemed pretty clear that Kelly wasn't the only one struggling to catch up.

“What was that? If you don't mind me asking ma’am.” Kelly leaned forward with what he hoped was a winning smile on his face.

“Such good manners as well as the looks.” Mary smiled benevolently.

“No I  _ really  _ like her.” Kelly winked at Nick who groaned almost inaudibly.

“Why the same thing you gentlemen are looking for.” She said as if it were the most obvious thing in the world. “The location of Widdershins of course. To be honest, I’d almost given up hope, but my great uncle made me promise on his deathbed I’d continue the legacy of the librarians, and I’ve never broken a promise in my life.”

Nick and Kelly nodded in unison, unable to do anything else as Mary Hancock chatted away.

“Mary, he said, the Maelstrom may hide itself, may even seem dormant, but there’ll always be people wanting to track it down. Our family must always do everything we can to protect it.” 

“Wait, what?” Kelly blurted out exchanging a confused glance with Nick.

“I'm sorry ma’am I think you've lost us. We really only came to find out about my great uncle and..” Nick began to speak

“You don't know?” Mary gasped, holding her hands to her face for a few seconds before apparently regaining her composure. She took a deep breath before continuing. “Well My great Uncle always said Widdershins knows it's own. You may not know about the Maelstrom, but I’d say it certainly knows about you.”

Nick opened his mouth to speak but Mary just shook her head and pushed the stack of papers towards him.

“There’s everything you need in those papers, but I’d hurry boys. Widdershins can only hide so long if someone is determined to find it.” Mary rose to her feet with remarkable speed and disappeared in the same disconcerting way the man they’d met earlier had.

“Well that was  _ seriously  _ weird.” Kelly said, leaning back on his seat.  
  



	2. Chapter 2 - Nick

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Nick and Kelly go in search of Widdershins. The question is will they find what they expected...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> huge thanks to @jillthemenace for flailing and looking over this. ILY x

Nick O’Flaherty sat in the main salon of the fiddler trying to take in the wealth of information Mary Hancock had given them. Or, if he was honest, trying to make sense of it. On the one hand it was better than he had hoped for, there  _ were _ extensive accounts of great great uncle Griffin. It had made him smile when he realised the man had been both a Pinkerton and then later a private detective, making him feel more of a connection to the man than he’d ever dreamed possible.

The trouble was the rest of the information, because it was, quite frankly, nuts. Nick wasn't averse to conspiracy theories - after all, he’d watched enough discovery channel on nights when sleep was elusive. But even for him, it seemed, well, a stretch to say the least.

Rolling his neck he glanced across at Kelly, who’d been surprisingly silent as they’d scoured the papers, and his stomach plummeted at the look on his face. Nick had seen that look far too many times; that look had preceded pretty much every single ridiculous adventure Kelly had ever suggested.  Before he had chance to look away, Kelly caught his eye and winked.

“So we’re doing this, right? Trying to find Widdershins.” Kelly’s oddly coloured eyes practically glowed with excitement.

“Kels..” 

Why he even bothered to protest, Nick wasn't sure. He knew it wouldn't work, and, worse still, he knew if Kelly had his heart set on something he’d be powerless to say no.

“Ah c’mon Nicko. Mysterious lost town, supernatural events and creepy assed librarians. I mean how can you resist?” Kelly grinned back, in all likelihood knowing the argument was already won, the bastard.

Nick huffed out a gust of air and leaned back against the wall.

“Because it’s a load of bullshit. I mean, seriously,” Nick reached an arm forward and plucked up a worn piece of parchment with a painting of what looked like a blob with tentacles and waved it at Kelly, “creatures that dissolve people with acid?’

Kelly, if anything, smiled wider. Nick sighed and shuffled some of the other papers.

“Mystical whirlpools of magic and hey, fucking mermaids.” He added with a sigh.

“Mermaids are real.” Kelly folded his arms and looked defiantly back at him. Nick fought not to roll his eyes.

“Kels..” He murmured softly under his breath.

“I've seen them.” Kelly replied, undeterred.

“When you were high.” Nick remembered the story very well. Hell, he’d even sat through Kelly regaling Emma Grady, Ty’s cousin, with it.

“No. Well, okay yes, valid. But I know what I saw and it wasn't the last time either.” Kelly reached forward onto the table and plucked a drawing from under a pile of papers. “Looked exactly like this…”

Kelly paused for a second reading the writing on the paper.

“This Ketoi.” Kelly waved the paper triumphantly.

“Seriously? Mermaids?” Nick shook his head, partly in exasperation, but mainly in affection.

“Well strictly speaking I'm pretty sure it was a merdude I saw.” Kelly tilted his head to one side as if lost in the memory.

“Kels, you live in Colorado.”

“Hey, we have lakes in Colorado.” Kelly pouted.

“There are, what, merpeople in the Colorado lakes?” Nick tried his best to keep the amusement out of his voice. Judging by the expression on Kelly’s face, his husband saw right through him.

“Yep.”

“In a state, what, over a thousand miles from the sea?”

“Yep”

“You know that makes no sense right?” Nick laughed. Kelly response was to flip the picture and point at the writing on the back.

“Says right here the Ketoi have land based hybrids. Bet they choose ones with transport links.” Kelly said entirely straight faced.

“Hybrids with private planes?” Nick managed to choke out between bouts of laughter.

“Hey laugh now, you won't be laughing when I prove you wrong.” Kelly smirked as he got up from the seat opposite Nick and moved to the bench seat Nick was sitting on, swinging a leg over his thigh to straddle him.

“Okay.” Nick laughed as he grabbed Kelly by the hips to tug him closer.

“Hey maybe I should call Emma and Marley.” Kelly tilted his head.

 Ever since they’d met Emma Grady and her camera man at Deuce and Livy’s wedding a few years earlier, Kelly had been more than a little keen to join one of their cryptozoology treks. Nick knew it was only a matter of time before he was wandering through the mountains looking for BigFoot.

“Kels, you are not inviting Emma Grady on our honeymoon.” Nick said as seriously as he could manage.

“Ok fair.” Kelly shrugged, “She’ll be pissed she missed out though” 

“Kels” Nick growled tugging him closer.

“Uh-huh” 

“Shut up.”

…………..

From what they’d worked out, Widdershins, or at least whatever was left of it, was about a half an hour drive up the coast road. They’d got up pretty early, for them at least, and hired a car, deciding to take the scenic route and stop off for lunch in Rockport, a town on the way. The morning had been balmy, the sun bright in the sky. By the time they reached their destination, or as near as the could guess at least, it seemed to Nick as if the storm clouds were starting to gather.

“Maybe we should try again tomorrow” Nick said eyeing the darkening skies with suspicion.

It’d been so warm in the morning that they hadn't even bothered with coats. If it rained as hard as it looked like it was going to, he was pretty sure the rental company wouldn't appreciate two dripping ex marines dropping the car back. Nick didn’t even have his police badge to try and get out of any fine related to waterlogged seats.

“Hey it’ll be fine. Trust me, I know weather.” Kelly said practically bouncing out of the car only pausing to grab a daypack from the back seat.

Nick followed reluctantly, grumbling under his breath about how Kelly was a corpsman not a fucking weatherman. It only made Kelly laugh.

On the plus side, he doubted they’d be here long. From what they could see from the road, the land in front of them was filled with nothing; only overgrown fields stretching as far the eye could see and ending with a sliver of sea, just visible in the distance. It wouldn’t take long before Kelly realised what Nick had always suspected., Widdershins, and all its elaborate stories were just that, stories, urban myths to entertain children, nothing more. As far as Nick was concerned, what was left of the town had probably been absorbed into one of the quaint fishing ports that littered the Port Ann coastline.

Nick paused only to retrieve his cane from the back seat. Whilst his knee had been pretty good since his surgery, they’d been doing a lot of walking in the last few days and he couldn't help but feel it was sensible to have it with him if Kelly was intent on dragging him all along the cliffs. That and Kelly  _ really _ liked the cane.

“C’mon Irish” Kelly grinned back at him before bouncing over the fence at the side of the layby. There was something infectious about his excitement. Nick only hoped he wasn't too disappointed when they didn't find anything.

“Listen Kels, I don't think there’s anything here.” Nick shouted after him. Kelly just ignored him making him hurry to catch up.

“So, port town right?” Kelly paused for a second scanning the horizon, brows furrowed in concentration. 

“Yeah but..” 

“So we head towards the cliffs.” Kelly smiled at him, clearly happy now the decision had been made. “Don't give me that look Nicko, if everyone could see the town from the road it wouldn't exactly be a hidden magical town now would it?”

Nick opened his mouth to argue but, in a strangely deranged way, it kind of made sense. Deciding that it was probably best to humour Kelly, he closed his mouth again.

“Let's go.” Kelly grabbed his hand and dragged him forward. 

Half an hour of aimless wandering later, and they’d found exactly what Nick had expected. Nothing. The only difference was that now the clouds had darkened, almost swirling in the sky, and the wind had picked up as if trying to push them back. Even Kelly was starting to look disheartened.

“Kels, we should head back.” Nick looked over his shoulder, not even able to see the road from where they were.

“See there.” Kelly pointed towards a headland in the distance. Nick rested his chin on Kelly’s shoulder and squinted. “The land dips away. Let's just try there and then we can head back.” 

“Kels..”

“Hey, if I'm wrong think how much fun you can have taking your frustration out on me when we get back to the Fiddler.” 

Nick raised an eyebrow as Kelly winked at him.

“Fine.” He said, struggling to keep the smile off his lips and ignoring the way his jeans felt more than a little tight. 

Kelly grasped his t-shirt and tugged him forward, kissing him briefly before pulling back.

“Jeez Irish, you're so easy.” He laughed, dancing away as Nick tried to pull him back.

Nick followed, laughing under his breath. This was crazy, but fuck it, it was certainly fun. They had years ahead of them and Nick couldn’t wait, he just knew having Kelly Abbott as his husband was going to be the greatest adventure of his life.

He was still smiling when he caught up to Kelly, who was standing on the brow of the dip holding an arm out to stop Nick from moving forward and staring into the distance.

“Do you see that?” Kelly said under his breath, nodding ahead.

Nick followed his gaze. He had to admit the land ahead looked strange, apparently surrounded by what looked like a haze, making it difficult to focus. The wind was swirling around them, tugging at their clothes insistently, and as Nick looked harder he could almost see indistinct shapes in the gloom ahead. His eyes stung as he tried to make out what he was seeing, but it was futile.

“Storm coming?” He asked, not really believing what he was saying but refusing to think about anything else, because anything else was crazy.

“Not like any storm I’ve ever seen.” It seemed like almost a physical effort for Kelly to drag his eyes back to Nick. “Tell me you're feeling that, too.”

Nick paused for a second. Of the pair of them he was the one who always thought things through, looked at all the angles, leaving Kelly to be the impulsive one. As he looked ahead, his brain screamed at him that going forwards was insane, that logically the best thing they could do was pull back and regroup. There was something else though, a pull in his gut like something was calling out to them, begging them to help. It overwhelmed almost all of his brain’s objections.

“Yeah.” He said on an exhale.

“So we go on.” All the amusement had drained out of Kelly’s face.

“Yeah.” 

As they scrambled down the slope, Nick tried to explain away all the odd sensations. He’d been at sea when storms rolled in and he knew how much they could mess with perception, hell, he knew that was a greater risk than the weather itself. It was all perfectly logical. 

Ahead of them what appeared to be ruins began to take shape in the gloom, and it was almost as if the ground was vibrating beneath his boots. Still they carried on walking. Nick wasn't sure he could’ve stopped if he’d tried.

“Creepy assed magic town. They weren't fucking lying.” Kelly muttered and Nick snorted out a laugh, breaking the tension a little.

The wind was blowing in their faces, sending seafoam stinging into their skin, as a huge fog bank lay, thick and heavy, just a few paces ahead. They didn't even hesitate, both walking forward with determination. The fog blurred everything for a few seconds, making Nick’s skin tingle, he instinctively grabbed Kelly hand. 

Then, just as suddenly as the clouds had arrived they seemed to vanish into nothing, the sun shining brightly in the sky. Nick barely noticed because something else captured his attention, the ruined city streets and buildings of a long deserted town lay straight ahead of him, extending all the way to the sea.

“I fucking knew it.” Kelly grinned.

………….

“Admit it, this place is fucking weird.” Kelly’s expression was little short of gleeful as the walked down the empty streets of what looked to have been a pretty substantial town at some point. 

They’d been walking for a good thirty minutes and had passed by some impressively grand looking houses, all with rusted gates and overgrown gardens indicating they’d been deserted many years before. The strange part was that the buildings themselves hadn’t started to crumble -- each one they passed seemed almost perfectly preserved, as if waiting patiently for their residents to return. It was more than a little creepy. He was walking the very same streets his ancestor had walked so many years before. Nick felt an odd sense of belonging.

“Ok, yeah.” Nick admitted.

He felt torn though, because as much as the place was creepy, it was also intriguing. A perfectly preserved replica of the past, the sort of place that Nick desperately wanted to explore. Neither of them had said much, for once, more absorbed with taking in everything that surrounded them. Kelly had his phone out, taking picture after picture on the pretence of sending them to everyone. Something that would have to wait as, unsurprisingly, they had no signal.

“Didn't they say there was once some huge museum here?” Kelly asked peering into the distance and indicating to an imposing looking building a couple of blocks away. “You reckon that’s it?”

“Looks like.” Nick had to admit this was turning out to be way more fun than he’d expected.

“Oh, you know your inner history nerd is dying to check it out. Never know, they might have left some bits behind.I’ve got some extra room in the bag.” Kelly winked as he tugged on the strap of the bag casually slung over one shoulder. Nick’s breath caught, once again being blown away by just how beautiful his husband looked smiling and happy and bathed in sunlight. 

“Ok yeah..” He admitted sheepishly, Kelly just responded with peels of laughter before the pair of them were sprinting down the deserted streets.

As they got closer, they could see a large brass plaque confirming they’d reached the Ladysmith Museum. There were even some old, tattered posters still advertising exhibits long gone. Nick paused by one advertising the celebrated discovery of the mummy of Nephren Ka and found himself half wishing he could've seen this place in its heyday.

“Door’s open” Kelly shouted down from the ornate wooden door.

“It is?” 

“Well it is now.” Kelly jangled a set of lock picks. “Won't hurt to look inside.”

Nick couldn't argue with that logic. It wasn't exactly like there was anyone around.

The huge doors creaked as they pushed them open and they found themselves in a giant entrance way. Everywhere was covered with a fine layer of dust, and in the middle was a dinosaur skeleton. Nick briefly wondered why no one had moved it, before going to look closer.

“Am I the only one getting Jurassic Park vibes in here?” Kelly joked, nodding up towards the skeleton. 

“Yeah, as long as there aren't any velociraptors around, we should be good.” 

“I reckon we could take them.” 

“I think we’re good. Hadrosaur, herbivorous.” Nick said as he brushed the dust of the sign with his thumb.

“Admit it, you love it here.” Kelly came up behind him and wrapped his arms around his waist, resting his chin on his shoulder. “Hey, wanna get laid in a dusty deserted museum in the middle of nowhere?”

Nick inclined his head to one side so he could see more of Kelly’s face.

“Kinda..” Nick laced their fingers together and turned his head to lean in to a kiss.

They never got a chance.

“You hear that?” Kelly sprung back, head cocked to the side, listening intently to a low rumbling sound coming from somewhere outside.

“Yeah.” Nick instinctively reaching for the gun that wasn't there. Kelly raised an eyebrow, lips quirking

Nick gestured to his eyes with his first two fingers and then to the door. Kelly nodded silently, both of them instantly snapping back into the marine mode that was so ingrained in their psyche. 

The sound that had startled them grew louder the closer they came to the door, a low rumble and the distinctive sound of chanting, the kind of sound that sent shivers down your spine. Nick ducked his head around the doorway, before pulling back sharply, shaking his head to indicate there was no one in sight. Beneath them the ground began to shake.

“We need to get outta here.” Kelly hissed. Nick just nodded.

They crept out of the open doorway, careful not to make any sounds, scanning around for any hostiles. A tiny part of Nick’s mind was laughing at how seriously they were taking the whole thing, but at the end of the day he’d always trusted his instincts. And his instincts were screaming at him that something was very wrong.  Kelly tapped Nick’s arm and pointed to the far corner of the road. A man stood with his back to them, tucked away down a gap between buildings. One arm straight up the air, the other holding an old looking suitcase. His head was thrown back as he chanted up at the sky, apparently oblivious to his audience. He was quite a distance away, but from what Nick could tell, he looked like he was wearing almost period costume, his black frock coat flapping in the sudden breeze that had picked up.

“Well, that can't be good.” Kelly said trying to lighten the mood, although his whispered tone said something else entirely.

Nick’s only response was to grip his cane harder, finger hovering over the release button. The air around the stranger started to shimmer, glowing almost blue, and however much Nick tried to convince himself it was just a trick of the light, he knew it wasn't. The shimmering grew brighter, more distinct, before suddenly they couldn't see the man anymore, only a blueish shockwave heading straight for them at remarkable speed.

“What the..” Kelly didn't get a chance to finish the sentence before the wave hit them and it felt as if the world was spinning on its axis.

Nick only noticed two things before he lost consciousness. The first was strangely reassuring; a whispered ‘fuck” from Kelly. He barely had time to process that whatever had happened to them, Kelly was here and alive, before he noticed the second, far more troubling, thing. There, careering down the street, right towards them, was a large horse and cart. It was the last thing he saw before the blackness took over.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So that happened - I wonder what Whybourne will think of the new arrivals....


	3. Chapter 3 - Whyborne

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I’m so sorry this took a while. If I’m honest I psyched myself out a bit so I hope it’s okay...  
> Hopefully the next chapter won’t take as long

Sitting at my desk I endeavoured to focus all my attention on the papyrus in front of me. With all that had been going on I had neglected my work for far too long. whilst Griffin had assured me that no one would expect anything else under the circumstances, it did little to assuage my feelings of inadequacy. 

Even now, closetted away in my office, having given Miss Parkhurst strict instructions that I should not be disturbed except in the case of a dire emergency, I found it almost impossible to focus without my mind wandering. I had still heard nothing from the Endicotts and the silence had become oppressive to say the least. Not only that, but soon the new mother of shadows would be arriving in Widdershins and I could not help but worry if the decision to let the umbrae take up residence in the Draakenwod was entirely wise. My many concerns were not even slightly conducive to concentrating on anything else.

Pinching my nose I endeavoured to at least try and concentrate on the ancient scroll on my desk. Perhaps my fears were unfounded but I could not see a way the Ladysmith would continue my employment if I persisted in neglecting my work.

No sooner had I began my translation than I was interrupted when the door to my office flew open. With a huff of annoyance I glanced up to see Mr Quinn, the head librarian, striding into the room closely followed by a rather flustered Miss Parkhurst. 

“Widdershins.” Mr Quinn nodded his head sharply as he came to a halt in front of my desk

“Oh, umm, yes. Hello Mr Quinn.” However hard I tried I still found Mr Quinn’s manner of addressing me somewhat disconcerting. I had, however, long decided it was futile to attempt to change it.

“I'm so sorry Dr Whyborne. I tried to stop him but he said it was an emergency.” Miss Parkhurst’s cheeks flushed pink.

“It’s quite alright Miss Parkhurst.” I replied and she appeared to relax somewhat.

If I was honest I had held out little hope that my instructions would hold much water. I had, however, expected Christine to be the one to barrel past my poor secretary.

Miss Parkhurst smiled hesitantly before retreating from the office, rather rapidly if you asked me. I suspected Mr Quinn had the same effect on many people.

“There is a situation in the library.” Mr Quinn stated, offering no other explanation, much to my annoyance. “I have informed Mr Flaherty as well.”

I took a second to glance down at the papyrus and shake my head sadly. Perhaps it would be something easily resolved, maybe a new occult text had come into the possession of the librarians, although considering the state of my fortunes at the moment I feared it was unlikely. Accepting the reality that I would, in all likelihood, be caught up in another drama that precluded any further study, I carefully placed the scroll into my desk drawer.

“Lead on Mr Quinn.” I said, trying to keep the annoyance out of my voice.

………..

Mr Quinn led me through the labyrinthine passageways, deep into the very heart of the library. One only needed to spend a short time in the space to be left with little doubt that the building’s architect had not been entirely of sound mind when he had designed the space and although, over the years, I had a better knowledge than most of its many twists and turns, I was nonetheless grateful for Mr Quinn accompanying me.

As we rounded a corner the sounds of voices arguing floated toward me, neither of which I recognised, although knowing Mr Quinn’s shadowy army of librarians it wasn't entirely surprising.

“One of the younger librarians discovered them unconscious in the street.” Mr Quinn said, presumably by way of explanation but as he had told me little else of what was going on it didn't help a great deal. 

“I swear I didn't tell them Nicko.” A voice floated between the stacks.

“Fucking Sidewinder. This isn't funny guys.” A second voice said, this one with a heavy Boston accent although somewhat different to what I was used to hearing. The language was so uncouth though, I suspected it maybe an accent more prevalent amongst the working classes.

“What the devil are they talking about.” I muttered under my breath, more to myself than expecting an answer.

“ _ Crotalus cerastes, _ otherwise known as the horned rattlesnake or sidewinder rattlesnake. I believe it is a venomous snake prevalent in the deserts of the south and Mexico.” Mr Quinn informed me.

“Um, thank you Mr Quinn.” 

I had to confess the information did little to explain why the men appeared to be arguing, although clearly anyone who seemed determined that their situation was caused by snakes was not entirely of sound mind. Were it not for the fact that I had witnessed the destruction of Stormhaven asylum with my own eyes I would have considered the possibility that the two men may be escaped lunatics. Of course we had come across ratlike creatures from the otherside and I briefly wondered if it were possible that there were snakelike creatures as well. It would certainly explain why Mr Quinn had felt it necessary to summon me.

“I must confess that I am still confused why you felt it necessary to bring them into the library.” It was the one part of the situation I could not quite understand.

“I think you should probably see for yourself.” Mr Quinn nodded for me to continue.

“Very well.” I replied, although I failed to see why my presence would be required in such a situation.

As we rounded the corner I was greeted with a scene I had not expected. Two men sat shackled to chairs surrounded by a group of librarians clutching large tomes in their hands. That in itself would’ve been unexpected and yet it wasn't that that drew my attention. The men both ceased their bickering and stared at me wide-eyed, the larger of the pair muttering ‘no, nope, not possible’ under his breath like some sort of prayer. I had never seen men attired as these two were in all my days, I had heard that in the west men often dressed more casually than in the larger cities but this was something else. Both men wore pants seemingly made of denim and, whilst I was aware of the trend in working men for such clothing, I had never seen any so tailored and unmarked before. Instead of shirts the men were wearing short sleeved tops of a cotton like material. On closer inspection, the larger of the men’s shirt had a curious design with the “Boston Red Sox’ emblazoned across it and the words ‘World Champions’ and the numbers 20 and 07 either side.

The man in question stared back at me as if he’d seen a ghost and I couldn't shake the feeling that there was something deeply familiar about him, although I was equally certain we had never met before. His eyes were bright green and seemed confused and shocked as he looked at me and his auburn hair, which was somewhat longer than the current fashion, curled around his ears. I realised that perhaps it was his colouring, being so similar to my beloved Griffin, that made me feel as if I knew the man but it was more than that, there was something in his expression as well.

“I knew it.” The smaller man declared, almost victoriously and I dragged my eyes away to look at him. 

Whilst he was shorter in stature than his companion he was no less intimidating to look at, with muscles that spoke to an individual more than used to manual labour. His hair was light brown in colour and appeared to be sticking up in multiple directions as if he had never heard of hair oil. That wasn't the most striking thing about him though. That prize would undoubtedly go to his eyes which were a curious mix of blue, grey and green. The kind of colour that would, in all likelihood, be described as changeable or stormy by the penny dreadful romances that seemed to be popular with the ladies.

The man sprang to his feet smiling warmly, the shackles that had been attached to his wrists clattering to the floor noisily. Instinctively I stepped back, eyes narrowed and ready to combat such obvious sorcery as this. The man seemed entirely unfazed by my reaction and simply held out a hand, smile, if anything, growing wider.

“Kelly Abbott, having a really fucking weird day.” He grinned.

“Kels..” The other man said softly.

“What I'm just being polite.” Mr Abbott shrugged before laughing as the man pointedly looked at his unfettered wrists and down to the shackles on the floor.

“Ah c’mon babe, they were hurting my wrists and it’s not like you haven't done the same.” He sounded entirely unapologetic.

“I was  _ trying  _ to play along.” The other man hissed under his breath and I watched horror struck as he placed his hands on his lap, handcuffs dangling from his fingers and displaying an elaborate tattoo on his forearm.

“Wasn’t much of a challenge” Mr Abbott said, obviously noticing my shocked expression. “His handcuffs are way more challenging.”

The last words were accompanied by a suggestive wink that had me blushing until my ears burned. Surely he couldn’t mean what he seemed to be implying? Nonetheless memories of my memorable night with my husband and his handcuffs flooded my brain. I had to pinch the bridge of my nose to negate the effects of such thoughts.

“I don’t suppose you have your hus...friend Griffin Flaherty with you?” Mr Abbott chattered  away apparently unaffected by my response to his earlier words. “God we’d love to meet him.”

“Subtle, Kels, very subtle.” The other man growled. To my ear it sounded somewhat threatening but Mr Abbott only laughed. I meanwhile, felt my stomach drop. It appeared he had been on the verge of saying husband and the very implication of that word had my heart racing. Surely they couldn’t know about myself and Griffin.

“I talk when I’m nervous, you  _ know _ that, and I didn’t exactly google ‘how to talk to your Victorian ancestors’” 

“He is not…”

“I know he’s not Griffin, near enough though.”

The pair started to bicker back and forth as I struggled to make sense of their words.

“Time travel is not real” The other man spat back.

“Explain this then..” Kelly waved his arms around apparently oblivious to their audience shifting uncomfortably 

“I told you it’s Sidewinder.”

“And the guy who looks just like that Whyborne dude?”

“Lookalike. You sent the picture to the group chat for fuck’s sake.” 

“Babe..” Kelly held his hands up as if trying to calm the other man

“Beaumont Tyler Grady get your ass out here right now. this shit ain’t funny anymore and if you think I’m not gonna report all the code violations from all these frigging lamps you are very wrong.”

 The other man stood and glared around the room. His height was impressive, around the same as my own but where my frame was slender, his was all muscle.

“Time travel?” I managed to interject.

Whilst it was perfectly possible that the two men were, as I had suspected earlier, clinically insane, I couldn’t quite discount the possibility. It would make a degree of sense of the situation, however unlikely it seemed. There was a time I would have laughed at the idea, refusing to even entertain it, but I had seen so much that was strange and unusual over the last few years it was impossible to discount such things.

“Yes!” Mr Abbott exclaimed triumphantly. “He believes me.”

“Or he’s playing along ‘cos he’s been, you know, paid.” The other man folded his arms.

“Babe, I know this is weird but I really think we’ve got to play along.” Mr Abbott ran a hand down the other man’s arm in a shockingly intimate gesture.

“Fine but I’m not defending your ass when the others are all laughing at you.”

“Valid” 

The man slumped back down into his chair, still glowering and arms still firmly crossed.

“Look I know it sounds weird.” Mr Abbott turned back to me, an almost pleading look in his eyes that I must confess I was not immune to. He took a deep breath. “But an hour ago we were walking round in a deserted town and now, boom we’re here.”

“Mr Abbott, I..” I wasn't entirely sure how to reply if I was honest, and much as their story seemed far fetched, there was a curious ring of truth to it that I couldn't deny.

“Call me Kelly.” 

“Um, yes of course, Kelly.” I felt somewhat uncomfortable being on first name terms with a relative stranger but equally I felt it prudent to placate the men in case my instincts were incorrect and they were indeed lunatics. “I confess I am at a loss here.”

“Me too bud, me too.”

“Um yes, quite. Perhaps it would be wise to start at the beginning.” I said, struggling to get the conversation back on track. Something else that Kelly had said struck me and I berated myself for not having considered it earlier. “You mentioned something about ancestors.”

“Yeah, well that’s kinda why we ended up here. At least I think it is.” Kelly paused for a second glancing back at his companion who simply sighed and waved a hand for him to continue. “So Nick..wait hang on, where were we? Yeah, I should probably explain, the grumpy one over there in complete denial is Nick O’Flaherty.”

“Hey!” The other man protested.

“Well you are. Not saying it doesn't make sense babe.” Kelly turned back to the other man and shrugged.

“You were saying.” It seemed like an exercise in futility trying to keep the conversation on track but nonetheless I felt it important to try. I had to confess the other man’s name came as a surprise, being all too close to my beloved husbands and yet, not quite close enough. Surely it had to be a coincidence.

“Yeah, sorry. So Nick was researching his family history and we can across this photo of you and Griffin Flaherty and we thought, what with Griffin being Nick’s what, great uncle, right babe?” Kelly turned back to Nick.

“Great-great uncle.”

“Oh yeah, right..” Kelly continued.

“That’s not possible.” I said under my breath. 

As far as I was aware Griffin had no other family. I paused for a second to consider things. We had met Griffin’s older brother in Alaska, in fact he was due to arrive in Widdershins in the near future, but he had given no indication of any offspring. There was another brother though. Was it possible that I was looking at one of his descendants right now? Then again my husband had been able to find no record of the man and if Mr O’Flaherty was one of his descendants it would not explain how the pair had a picture of myself and Griffin in their possession.

“I know it sounds weird but if you just grab my bag we can prove it. I’ve got pictures on my phone and everything.” Kelly replied.

‘Is this true Mr Quinn?”I asked as I turned to the head librarian.

“Yes, Widdershins.” Mr Quinn nodded smartly.

“Then perhaps I should see this bag.” If I were being honest with myself it was partly genuine interest and mainly to have some respite from a conversation that was in danger of giving me a headache.

“Wait you’re Mr Quinn.” Kelly explained and Mr Quinn stiffened as the attention turned to him. Out of the corner of my eye I saw several of the younger librarians tightening their hold on the large volumes in their hands.

“We met your grand niece, she seemed cool in a creepy assed librarian kinda way.” Kelly continued.

“My descendants are librarians?” Mr Quinn, seemed unsurprising delighted by this revelation.

“Yep, down the coast from here, something about keeping up the family tradition, right Nicko?” Behind him Mr O’flaherty nodded tersely. “Dude she gave us all this stuff on Widdershins, something about the Maelstrom knowing us which made no sense, then again the stuff she gave us was kinda freaky so..”

“My grand niece sent you here.” Mr Quinn said, eyes glittering with excitement.

“I mean pretty much, yeah.” Kelly smiled clearly feeling that he may have found an ally.

I cleared my throat loudly endeavouring to refocus Mr Quinn’s attention.

“Perhaps I should see this bag Mr Quinn.” When the librarian looked back at me, he was still half smiling, or as much as he ever did. Then again, I supposed the news that your family legacy was continuing far after your death would have that effect. 

“Follow me.” Mr Quinn turned somewhat reluctantly to leave.

“It, err might be best if you stayed here for now.” I said in what I hoped was a suitably friendly manner.

“Okay.” Kelly replied, looking a little disappointed. “Just be careful with the med kit, you know sharps and stuff.”

“You brought your med kit?” Mr O’flaherty muttered

“Babe I always bring my med kit, you know that.” 

Taking their distraction as an opportune moment to leave I began to follow Mr Quinn.

“If you find emu oil in there you can throw that cos that’s just gross” Mr O’Flaherty shouted after us.

“What is your problem.” I heard Kelly reply

“Emu oil Kels,  _ Emu.”  _  Mr O’Flaherty said as if it were in someway an explanation.

“Don't throw the emu oil.” Kelly shouted after us. “Listen if you keep waving that book in my face, you and I are gonna fall out bud.”

Judging by his words one of the junior librarians had tried to stop Mr Abbott from following us. I wasn’t sure if it was an entirely good idea.

Mr Quinn and I made our way down the winding corridors without speaking although I couldn't help but notice the smile still present on my companion’s face. Presently we arrived in area with a table in an alcove upon which was laid out a variety of objects but my attention was drawn elsewhere for there standing examining them was my husband, Christine and a younger man, presumably a junior librarian.

“My dear.” Griffin exclaimed as soon as he became aware of my presence. “You should see these items. They are truly extraordinary.”

His eyes glittered with excitement rather than fear which was somewhat reassuring. Christine was simply shaking her head as if in exasperation.

“Are they magical?” I asked, concerned that the men’s story was just an elaborate ruse to cover up sorcery.

“No, that’s the thing. I can see residual magic clinging to them, as if they have been perhaps touched by a spell but the items themselves are entirely inert and then there’s this.” Griffin held up a battered ebony cane that looked worn and well used and yet still familiar.

I took it from his hand, looking at it closely.

“It looks rather like yours.” I said more to myself than anyone else. “An original model perhaps.” 

“I thought so too,” he said, “but look here”

He pointed to the top where silver leaves surrounded a crest and not just any crest. Although worn it was unmistakably the Whyborne family crest.

“I'm not sure I understand.” I looked up at him wide eyed.

Griffin produced his own cane from under his arm and pointed to a distinctive mark half way down it’s ebony shaft. I looked closely at the cane in my hands and found the exact same mark.

“It  _ is _ my cane. My exact cane except it looks much older.” Griffin said looking as confused as I felt. 

Could it be possible? Could it be that the preposterous tale I had just heard was actually true. It was scarcely believable and yet at the same time it felt like the only explanation.

“Oh Whyborne.” Christine slapped my arm breaking me out of my thoughts. “Whatever nonsense have you found yourself embroiled in now. Honestly I can't leave you alone for five minutes.”   
  
  



End file.
